Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Law K. Shanmugam (fifth from left) hosted an official lunch today for delegates participating in the Sub-Saharan Africa Ministerial Exchange Visit. Together with him are (from left) Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Rwanda Louise Mushikiwabo, Acting Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Mauritius Usha Dwarka-Canabady, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Home Affairs Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration of Ghana Hanna Tetteh, Secretary of State of External Relations of Angola Manuel Domingos Augusto, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Nigeria Viola Adaku Onwuliri, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Tanzania Mahadhi Juma Maalim, Minister of Local Government, Public Works and Urban Development of Zimbabwe Ignatius M.C. Chombo and Permanent Secretary (Foreign Affairs) Chee Wee Kiong. -- ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

By Joanna Seow

SINGAPORE - Ministers and senior officials from seven Sub-Saharan African countries are in Singapore for a two-day exchange visit, at the invitation of Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam.

The delegates from Angola, Ghana, Mauritius, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe were hosted to an official welcome lunch by Mr Shanmugam at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) on Monday.

In his opening address, Mr Shanmugam said that Singapore will organise a series of customised courses for African senior officials on areas such as economic development, public administration and sustainable urban development, MFA said in a statement on Monday. The Singapore Cooperation Programme has trained over 7,700 African officials since it was started in 1992.

The African delegates also visited the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Institute of Technical Education College Central to learn about Singapore's experience in urban planning and education.